Jan

20

The health care reform effort, or shall we call it “The Grinch,” has stirred debate aplenty. What’s wrong with death panels, anyway? Do you want the government in charge of your health care, or do you want to keep Medicare? Would you accept drugs from Canadians? A former judge even dubiously argued that the legislation itself […]

Oct

21

Anyone who has taken the time to stroll around the arms and armor section of an art museum or who has carefully studied the size of a bed in a historical home easily comes to the same conclusion: the average person was a lot shorter in the past than he is now! A suit of […]

Oct

15

Amid the general wrack and roil of the debate over healthcare, a dozen smaller dramas have played out. The one I’ll be writing about today seems all but finished, and it proceeded along the rote lines of a typical legislative tragedy. To wit; a good idea is put forward, high-minded politicians dutifully offer it guarded […]

Apr

20

In recent years, there has been a lot of focus on healthy eating, and particularly about eating organic foods. Most organic food purchasers do so for one of two reasons. They believe either that organic food is more nutritious or that is better for the environment. There continues to be conflicting evidence about whether organic […]

Apr

9

April 9, 2009 | Comments Off on Opening the Door to a New Medical Marijuana Policy

While marijuana continues to be illegal under federal law, thirteen states, including first California in 1996 and most recently Michigan in 2008, have adopted laws legalizing the medical use of marijuana. This conflict between federal and state policies was brought into sharp focus during the Bush administration, which authorized the Drug Enforcement Agency to raid […]

Feb

17

Last week, William and Mary held its annual Benjamin Rush Symposium, at which selected students presented papers addressing issues in health law and bioethics. Among the many well-researched and articulate presentations, one that was particularly enlightening (in that it addressed a topic directly relevant to our daily lives yet little known among most of us) was […]

Feb

3

February 3, 2009 | Comments Off on Access Denied? The Fight for Corporate Accountability

Our chapter recently screened the documentary “Access Denied? The Fight for Corporate Accountability”, which features the tragic story of Diana Levine. Levine, a professional musician, was suffering from migraine’s and sought relief at a hospital. Due to faulty labeling on her medicine, Levine ended up having to get her arm amputated. A completely preventable error […]

Nov

20

November 20, 2008 | Comments Off on Religion in Hospital Rooms, Making the Call on Life Support and Death

On Monday, a 12-year-old boy who had been kept alive on life support died in a D.C. hospital. Motl Brody had aggressive brain cancer and his family grabbed the media’s attention when they began working through the judicial system to keep him on life support. His doctors declared Motl legally dead two weeks ago when […]

Nov

12

In a historical election that stirred political excitement in unprecedented ways, it was easy to overlook some of the potentially groundbreaking state measures that made it on the ballot. One such measure was Initiative 1000, Washington’s Death with Dignity Act (PDF), legalizing physician-assisted suicide for terminally ill, competent adults, medically predicted to die within six months. Physician […]